Key battle to be subject art trail
A SERIES of public art works are planned to celebrate the legacy of the Battle of Bosworth and beyond.
The aim is to create a trail through the ‘battlefield villages’, guiding visitors on a journey which highlights how this pivotal historical conflict touched communities then and now.
While the discovery of King Richard III’s remains and his reinterment has focused global attention on the events of 1485, the art trail will tell a broader tale than simply the defeat of the last Plantagenet.
Each of the installation locations have their own stories to tell - Dadlington; burial place of men who fell in battle; Sutton Cheney; where King Richard III prayed before the battle; Stoke Golding; the birthplace of the Tudor monarch with the crowning of Henry VII; Market Bosworth; the nearest village to the battle and naturally the Bosworth Battlefield Heritage Centre itself.
Now these sites are hosting the artistic proposals (pictured below) chosen as the final three from which the project will be commissioned.
The heritage centre and Market Bosworth have already staged the exhibition.
St Margaret’s Church in Stoke Golding hosts this week until Sunday July 30 everyday from 2pm to 7pm before moving to St James’ Church in Sutton Cheney from July 31 to August 2 with viewing from 9am and finally ending at Dadlington Church from August 3 to 7, open from 11am to 5pm, on August 6 from noon to 5pm.
Visitors are asked to leave feedback on the designs, which will be taken into account during final commissioning.
However, the venture is by no means a certainty. Money from the Arts Council has allowed the project partners to organise the art trail ‘beauty contest’ but other challenges will need to be tackled, including consideration of and public consultation on exact sites and obtaining funding for the actual commission and installation.
A spokesman said: “The project is by no means a given and there is some way to go.
“We have to be sensitive to the locations and the feelings of the local community and with regards to funding, any grants we might be able to get will almost certainly be match funding so we will have to raise money.
“But it would be great to tie in a fuller the story of the battle locally not just the defeat of Richard III.
“With the visitor centre in Leicester now and the battlefield site on our doorstep it’s a super opportunity to bring everything together.”
The project is being delivered by a steering group involving a partnership of community representatives from the ‘battlefield villages’ Leicester Shire Promotions Ltd, Creative Leicestershire, Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council, the Leicester Diocese and the Richard III Society.
Anyone who can’t make it along to the exhibitions can view the three artistic proposals, learn more about the project and provide feedback on the Leicester Shire Promotions website at www.goleicestershire.com/ expressions-of-interest.aspx